Navigation 101 - Basic navigation Tips

So you’re heading out into the hills or woods with your crisp

map and shiny new compass in hand, but do you know how to use them to get from A to B? Learning to navigate effectively takes much more than can possibly be included in a short blog post, but here are a few key elements to point you in the right direction, as it were.

The Four ‘D’s

When planning your route, there are four pieces of information that you should use to help you navigate accurately:

Distance

How far is it from where you are to where you are going, by the route you intend to take?

UK maps are incredibly precise, so you should be able to accurately measure the distance of your journey to within a hundred metres or so.

Direction

This could be as simple as ‘It’s roughly to the north’, or a compass could be used for more complex direction finding.

If you are faced with more than one path going in similar directions, a compass bearing can be used to distinguish between the two.

Duration

You know how far it is; at an average speed for an adult of 4km per hour, how long do you expect it to take you?

If you are walking for much longer than your expected duration it may be time to stop and reassess where you think you are.

Description

By carefully studying the map, you should be able to see what the route ahead will look like. This could include knowing that you will be walking alongside a river, looking out for fences or even using the slope beneath your feet.

The most accurate feature on any map is the height of the ground, marked with contour lines. These enable you to pick out valleys, hills and changes in how steep the ground is, all of which are unlikely to change.

D’oh! Gone Too Far

Sometimes referred to as the fifth ‘D’, picking a feature on the map that is beyond where you intend to go is useful to stop you going much further on if you overshoot your destination.

Training and Resources

If you're unsure about using any of these skills, it's worth getting hold of a local map and practising in an area you are familiar with. See how accurate your timing estimates are, and see if you can pick out the smallest details on the map.

If you think you would benefit from expert training, look for a Hill and Mountain Scheme training course administered by Mountain Training UK (www.mountain-training.org) or a National Navigation Award Scheme provider (www.nnas.org.uk).

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